Adopt a Gorilla or Golden Lion Tamarin.
Human
Origins Program at
the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History.
Taxonomy
Order: Primates
Suborder: Haplorhini
Infraorder: Catarrhini
Family: Hylobatidae
Physical Description
The 12 species of gibbons are classified, referring to their
size, as lesser apes. They exhibit many of the general characteristics
of primates: flat faces, stereoscopic vision, enlarged brain
size, grasping hands and feet, and opposable digits; and many
specific characteristics of apes: broad chest, full shoulder
rotation, no tail, and arms longer than legs.
Gibbons are relatively small, slender, and agile. They have fluffy, dense hair. They are not sexually dimorphic in size. Mature females usually weigh more than mature males. They have very long arms, which they use in a spectacular arm-swinging locomotion called brachiation. Their hands and fingers are also very long. The relatively short thumb is set well down on the palm, and their fingers form a hook, which is used during brachiation. Gibbons have very good bipedal locomotion, which they use on stable surfaces too large to grasp. When walking bipedally, arms are held up to keep from dragging and to assist with balance. Gibbons are sometimes observed putting their weight on their hands and swinging their legs through as if using crutches.
Gibbons do not build nests like the great apes. They sleep sitting up with their arms wrapped around their knees and their head tucked into their lap. They have ischial callosities (fleshy, nerveless pads attached to the hip bones, a characteristic otherwise found only in Old World monkeys).
Social Structure
Gibbons live in small, monogamous families composed of a mated
pair and up to four offspring. Less than six percent of all
primate species (more than 300) are considered monogamous.
Gibbons are one of the few apes where the adult female is the dominant animal in the group. The hierarchy places her female offspring next followed by the male offspring and finally by the adult male.
Gibbons are physically independent at about three, mature
at about six, and usually leave the family group at about
eight, though they may spend up to ten years in their family
group.
Communication
Gibbons are renowned for their loud, complex vocalizations.
These calls are used to announce location, defend territory,
and to develop and maintain pair bonds. The adult pair, sometimes
joined by practicing juveniles, sing duets. The song is composed
of separate male and female elements, including a great call
sung by the female. Each pair develops its own variation on
a theme so the vocalizations also identify individuals. Singing
is typically done at dawn because of its purpose as a locator
and spacing mechanism for groups. However, it may also be
heard at other times of the day.
Life span
Longevity in the wild is 25 to 30 years and can be as long
as 40 years in captivity.
Conservation
All gibbons are endangered, largely due to deforestation.
They are also hunted and trapped for the pet trade.
Fact sheets for gibbon species living at the National Zoo:
